El Paso County Health ended a squirrel-plague focus in Pleasant Valley at the end of December after finding no more rodents that had died from that cause.
The effort had begun in October after a squirrel in Westmoor Park was determined to have died from the plague.
The effort included the placement of “bait tubes” - in which squirrels are lured with peanut butter and dusted with insecticide that kills plague-carrying fleas.
From October to December, County Health examined dead squirrels that had been found in Pleasant Valley. “No others tested positive,” said Christie Kleinert, an
environmental health specialist with the department. “We removed our bait tubes at the end of December. We're not too worried about it anymore.”